Joyrides
by Kaidon of Mdama
Summary: One-shot about two Demigods decide to take a flying chariot out for a spin with unexpected consequences. OCxOC Disclaimer: I don't own PJO, that belongs to Rick Riordan


Ryan Colt sighed as he bent down on his knees and started to lift the heavy box at his feet. He braced himself and wheezed heavily as he hoisted it over his head. The contents started to shift side to side with a metallic clang.

"Katie I need some help." He grunted to the other Half-Blood in the store as the crates contents shifted all to his side. But Katie was oblivious to whatever he was saying. In the sunlight that shone through then big window on her, the Daughter of Hermes looked a bit like a Filipino princess. Long black hair flowing freely down to her shoulders, brown eyes that looked out longingly. Shensat tall, proud and ready to spring into action.

Gods he hoped whoever sent it here had the sense to shut the box tightly.

The wooden lid clattered on the floor behind him. Oh, I guess not. Before he could even blink, a dagger suddenly slid from the top and embedded itself on the floor.

"Shit!" Ryan cried out and struggled to balance the box and slide it to the top shelf, all the while its assortment of deadly weapons came raining down on him. "Katie. Katie!"

After several seconds the other Half-Blood finally snapped out her trance like state and noticed her friend's situation.

"Shit, sorry." She screamed and leapt over the desk to help him. She grabbed the other end of the box and helps him place it on the shelf. "Sorry about that." Katie muttered sheepishly as she started pulling daggers and swords from the ground.

Ryan kneeled down and started to pluck up some of the fallen weapons. "Thanks for the help." He muttered dryly, but both of them knew he could never stay mad at her.

Even before Ryan discovered his godly ties, Katie was one of his only friends, and that definitely didn't change after she fought off a pair of hungry Laistygonians giants to bring him to Camp Half-Blood.

"What were you even staring at anyway?"

She chuckled nervously as she placed the last of the weapons back inside the box and pointed outside the window. Ryan peeked over the desk and saw the field. Immediately he sighed. "No."

Parked on the empty fields outside was the Ares Cabins flying chariot, though as far as either of them could see, none of the Ares kids were there. Ryan had to admit it looked pretty impressive. The leather and wooden yoke was carefully scrubbed until it shone in the sunlight. Its box like frame had newly carved out images. It depicted various scenes throughout history, Hercules fighting the Hydra, Perseus be heading Medusa, and the Duke of Wellington charging Napoleon. Even the two-snow white Pegasi were newly bathed with their manes groomed and straightened.

One of the stallions would look up from the spot of grass it was grazing in and its eyes would meet Ryan's completely unafraid. A small smile tugged at his lips. One of the many side effects of being born from the God of the Dead was that animals pretty much hated him, though as far as Ryan knew, only Pegasi seemed not to mind.

"He seems to like you." Katie grinned and nudges Ryan with her shoulder. She had climbed back to her original spot behind the register and started counting the money inside. "Maybe it's a sign?" She added hopefully.

"No." He said firmly and that put an end to that argument.

They worked in silence for the next few minutes, taking inventory, stocking new wares and counting the money behind the register.

"It would only be a couple minutes." Katie says quietly as she shut the register, and discreetly placed a twenty inside the pocket of her hoodie.

Today she was dressed in a light purple hoodie over her orange Camp Half-Blood T-shirt and jeans. She looked every bit a normal teenager save for her sneakers which sprouted a pair of fluffy white wings at the ankles.

"No."

"Give me one good reason why we shouldn't do it." She challenged.

Ryan rolled his eyes and looks up from the T-shirts he was arranging. "One: If we do Clarisse will kill us, more importantly me. Two: Neither of us know how to drive that thing. Three: Chiron's already pissed at us for your little exploding makeup incident. And Four: Your pranks are the reason we're here fixing the camp store in the first place!" He said, counting it all with his fingers. "Now I dare you to name one reason why we should go?"

"Because I know you've been wanting to ride it just as much as I have." She replied without missing a beat.

Ryan bit his lips and silently cursed Katie. Damn her and her ironclad logic. He had thought he had been more discreet about his interest in the flying chariot. He only stole a quick look every few minutes and quickly looked away after. But I guess it was stupid to think he could get past Katie.

"Alright, say I do want to take the chariot. Do you seriously wanna get in trouble again?" Ryan reasoned patiently to Katie. Please listen. Please listen.

He breathed a sigh of relief as she hesitated to answer. That meant she was genuinely considering what he was saying. Unfortunately all his hopes were dashed when Katie looked up and gave him a grin more terrifying than the three snarling heads of Cerberus combined.

"Ryan." She said in that smooth voice that she only used when she was convincing people to see things her way, or when she was talking herself out of trouble. "We only get in trouble if we get caught, and we won't if you trust me."

Though if you were half as good as you looked then maybe we wouldn't be fixing the camp store. He wanted to add, but before he could Katie leapt over the counter and sprinted outside.

Cursing, Ryan grabbed his red flannel off the table and ran after her.

By the time he reached the field Katie was already stroking the mane of one of the Pegasi. Katie reached into her bag and held out an apple for him. At this point Ryan wasn't going to question where she got it.

The stallion took a cautious sniff at it, the slowly started to eat it. It neighed appreciatively and nibbled at Katie's hair, causing the daughter of Hermes to giggle.

The other Pegasi, a beautiful, though slightly smaller mare whinnies sadly. Ryan walks over to her, slipping a carrot out of Katie's bag and offered it to the Pegasus.

It took a huge bite that left only a stump and swallowed with a loud crunch. The magnificent winged horse softly nuzzled its head at Ryan's arms. "See. She likes you." Katie smiled and leaned on the frame of the chariot.

Ryan took a long look at her, then at the horses. Finally he sighed in defeat and raised his hands up. "Ten minutes."

With that, the pair climbed onboard. Katie grabbed the reins, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. Even the wings on her sneakers fluttered around happily. Ryan stopped beside her, keeping one hand firmly gripped on the side of the chariot.

"Stay away from the cabins and other crowded areas." Ryan advised as Katie snapped the reins. Both horses responded my moving to a trot.

It was slow at first, it was meant to pick up some speed, but gradually they shifted to a speedy canter, then to a full gallop. The flat field acted as a runway, giving the Pegasi plenty of room to move until finally both spreads out their wings in unison.

With a great leap, both horses launched themselves in the air, letting their wings carry them further upwards at they caught a good draft. Ryan gripped the side until it nearly snapped off. Even Katie seemed to falter. For a second she lost her cocky grin.

As the Pegasi started to move upwards, both of us expected then chariot to be too heavy to float and be weighed down and tip over. Instead the magic kicked in a wave pulsed over the chariot.

The two godlings felt a tingle throughout their bodies, lighter, freer, yet firmly rooted at the same time. The same seemed to be happening to the chariot. It effortlessly flew off the dirt, moving in the air as it would on solid ground.

Slowly, Ryan would take his hand off then railing. He inched away from the back end of the chariot and allowed himself to feel the air whooshing past him. It brushed off his cheeks swept his hair to one side.

Katie however wasn't faring so well. At first she looked just as confident as ever. Her eyes staring out on the horizon with the swagger and credence of a sky goddess. But despite her hoodie, Ryan saw her shivering against the cold. Her subtle movement of her arms closer to her body in an effort to bundle up.

Without hesitation, Ryan stripped his jacket and wrapped it around Katie. "Better double up princess." He smirked, seeing Katie glare at him in annoyance.

"I thought we agreed not to use that nickname?" She accepted the jacket and placed it on.

"I dunno what you're talking about. You agreed on it, I said no." He countered, spreading his arms out King of the World style. "Now just enjoy the view."

She grumbled, but looked down at the camp with Ryan. The sun rose just above the crest of Half-Blood hill, its rays glittered off the Golden Fleece perched on the tallest pine tree and reflected off to the cabins and the rest off camp.

The beam that Ryan gave was worth much more than the view or the trouble she could get in. It had been weeks since she'd seen him this happy and Katie wanted this moment to last forever.

Suddenly, a powerful gust of wind knocked the chariot to one side. "Woah." Katie pulled the Pegasi back as then wind sent them careening into each other.

She glanced back at Ryan whose happy expression was long gone. Now it was his usual emotionless face. "We better head down."

"Right." Another gust caused the chariot to tip over slightly. Ryan cursed as he nearly lost his footing and stumbled off. "What hell is with this wind!?"

Katie handed him the reins to give him something to hold onto. More winds blew and knocked chariot from side to side like a giant hand. Each time nearly threw one off them off. "Get this thing down!" Katie cried as she forced her eyes shut against the violent gale.

"I can't. Winds spooked the Pegasi." Ryan cried, trying to rein in the Pegasi to get them down, but the winged horses were now in full panic mode. They thrashed around wildly as they wrestled against the wind.

One particularly violent gust knocked under the chariot, causing it to tip over slightly. Katie struggled to find a footing but took a step back too far and walked right off.

The wings on her shoes flapped desperately to keep her afloat, but they couldn't handle the strong breezes of this altitude. The Daughter of Hermes screamed as she started to fall.

As swift as lightning, a hand reached out and snatched hers. "Hold on." Ryan gritted his teeth as he held onto Katie's arm with one hand, and on the reins with the other.

Thankfully her shoes made it easier, the winged sneakers kept her from falling down as Ryan pulled her back up. "You okay Katie?" He asked, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her vigorously.

She was pretty dazed, but managed to give him a nod. Satisfied, Ryan turned his attention back on the Pegasi. "I. Said. DOWN!"

With all his strength he yanked on the reins. It got through the Pegasi who momentarily stopped their panicking. Together they angled their bodies down and made a dive downwards.

Wind slammed at his face, no longer than gentle breeze but move like being struck by a hammer. Trees, buildings, clouds, it was all a blur as they sped faster to the ground.

Ryan's first instinct was to tuck down and cover his head to absorb the shock of the impact. The he noticed then trembling form beside him. He quickly wrapped his arms around her as well.

If he was going to walk out of this, then he would be damn sure Katie was walking beside him. He shut his eyes tight and waited for the impact.

Though instead of a violent crash, the Pegasi started to slow down as they descend. Ryan felt the winds weaken in the lower altitudes which gave the Pegasi more control.

Offering a quick prayer of thanks to his father and then to Zeus, Ryan eased himself and slumped his head against the chariot as he felt the thud of them hitting solid ground.

The horses pulled to a stop. Bt oddly enough Ryan still heard the clopping of hooves even when the Pegasi stopped.

He looked up and saw Chiron trotting slowly towards them.

"Shit." Ryan muttered.

* * *

"Mr Colt I know you are new here, but I at least expected you to know better than stealing a chariot." Chiron says, pacing the length of the rec room in the Big House. He kept his voice calm, but there was no mistaking disappointment in his voice.

Oddly enough he didn't seem angry, but that only made Ryan feel worse about himself. Beside him Katie sat down on a couch, strangely quiet for a change and was satisfied with just keeping herself bundled up in the blanket she was given.

"I thought you were more responsible than that Mr Colt. I was willing to forgive you the first time, but now it seems you must be punished." Chiron said, then sparing a glance at Katie. "You and Ms Bonifacio of course."

Ryan grimaced, looking as if he was punched in the gut. "I understand sir." He manages to get out.

Chiron nodded and began to walk out when Katie called after him. "Wait Chiron it was my fault, Ryan didn't have anything to do with it."

The old Centaur stopped and turned back to Katie, the mildest flickr of surprise in her face. "Oh?"

"Yes sir." She looked down. "Ryan didn't even want to go I just made him. It was my idea and I was the one who lost control of it."

He didn't respond right away. Chiron stroke his beard and thought about it. The look on his face told Ryan that he didn't buy a thing that Katie said. "So are you saying that you accept full responsibility of everything that happened?"

She didn't even blink when she said. "I do."

Chiron claps his hands together and nodded at me. "Then it seems you are free to go Mr Colt. Ms Bonifacio it's two weeks of stable duty, along with a talk about taking new Half-Bloods on your little adventures."

Ryan said his thanks and made his way out, though he meet Katie's eyes before he left. She gave him a quick wink and a small smile before he shut the door behind him.

* * *

Katie wrinkled her nose in disgust as she mopped the floor of the stables. She was used to doing chores like this back in Manila, yet the smell never quite grew on her.

She moved her mop in long strokes. Left and right. Left and right.

"Enjoying your punishment Princess?" She heard a voice as she dipped her mop back in the water.

Ryan was leaning by the doorway of the stables with his bass in his hands.

"Shouldn't you be in archery class Ry?" Katie doesn't look up as she let the water seep into mop.

"You didn't have to take the blame for me Katie. We both know I agreed to go with you to take the chariot." Ryan said, walking towards her.

She shrugged casually. "Well there was no point in both of us getting in trouble, besides it was my idea to take the chariot."

"Katie." He placed a finger on her chin and lifted her up until she was looking up at her. "Thank you."

Katie gave him a big hug. "So what brings you here? Maybe to help me clean these stables?" She said hopefully, leaning on her mop.

"You wish." He smirked and pulled out his bass and strummed a few notes. "I'm just here to entertain you while you work Princess."

He started to play a soft melody as Katie hummed softly, dancing with her mop as she swept it back and forth on the stables.

 **Author's note: Hey guys, Kaidon of Mdama here. This is my first real attempt of dabbling in a PJO only story, and a one shot for that matter. I took some OCs me and my friend darkdemon5 made up.**

 **Sorry if its not that good. Its midnight here and I have no cofee :/**

 **Please FFR. Thanks :)**


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